COMMUNITY DISCUSSIONS – SPECIAL RATE VARIATION

Council will be conducting an intensive series of consultation meetings at various locations in the Shire over the next couple of weeks to talk to the community about the need for Council to apply for to the Minister for Local Government for a special rate variation.

You are urged to attend one of the community discussions below so that you can be fully informed prior to making your decision as to whether to support Council’s application for a special rate variation:-

Community Poll

You can also have your say on this issue via a community poll which is available online (at www.kempsey.nsw.gov.au), at the Shire Libraries in Kempsey, South West Rocks, Stuarts Point and Hat Head, and in Council’s weekly advertisements in the Argus and Happynings. The poll closes at 4.30pm on Monday 6 April, 2009. The feedback from the poll will be considered at Council’s meeting on 7 April, 2009.

If you would like further information about how to have your say on the special rate variation please contact Megan Barber on 6566 3200.

DRAFT KEMPSEY LOCAL ENVIRONMENTAL PLAN (KLEP) 1987 (AMENDMENT NO 109)

THE PROPOSAL IS TO REZONE LAND CURRENTLY ZONED 1(D) (RURAL INVESTIGATION) “D” ZONE) TO 2(D) RESIDENTIAL (TOURIST). THE NEW ZONE WILL ALLOW ADDITIONAL RELATED USES ON THE SITE TO SUPPORT THE SLIM DUSTY CENTRE.

Council resolved at its meeting of 14th October 2008 to prepare a draft Local Environmental Plan (LEP) to rezone Lot 299 DP729768 and Lot 7 DP737376 Pacific Highway, South Kempsey. The proposal is to rezone land currently zoned 1(D) (RURAL INVESTIGATION) “D” ZONE) to 2(D) RESIDENTIAL (TOURIST). The new zone will allow additional related uses on the site to support the approved development.

In accordance with the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act the exhibition period will be 28 days from Tuesday, 24 March 2009, to Tuesday, 21 April 2009. The formal public exhibition including full copies of the draft LEP may be viewed at Council’s Customer First Centre at the Civic Centre, 22 Tozer Street, West Kempsey, Monday to Friday between 8.30am and 4.30pm. Copies of the draft LEP Instrument and the draft Map are available at the Kempsey Library, Monday to Friday between 10.00am to 6.00pm and Saturday between 10.00am to 1.00pm.

Exhibition documents are also available on Council’s website at www.kempsey.nsw.gov.au. Electronic copies of the exhibition documentation are available on CD for a fee of $25 from Kempsey Shire Council.

In accordance with Council’s Community Consultation Policy a public meeting will be held at the Council Chambers, Tozer Street, West Kempsey on Tuesday, 14 April 2009, starting at 6.00pm.

Submissions to the draft LEP are to be addressed to the General Manager, Kempsey Shire Council, PO Box 3078, WEST KEMPSEY NSW 2440 and are to be submitted no later than close of business on Tuesday, 21 April 2009.

Any interested person may inspect the draft LEP at the above location during the exhibition period.

For enquiries, contact Kate Alberry on 6566 3200 during normal office hours.

HALF DAY PUBLIC HOLIDAYS 2009

The following public half day holidays have been gazetted by the NSW Department of Industrial Relations for the Kempsey Shire Council area:-

• Wednesday afternoon, 29 April 2009 for Kempsey Show
• Thursday afternoon, 7 May 2009 for Kempsey Cup.

Local public holidays are gazetted under the Banks and Banks Holidays Act of 1912. This act requires that banks are closed on local public holidays. An appointed local holiday under the Act benefits employees who have an industrial award, agreement or contract of employment which confers a right of paid absence (or penalty rates in lieu) on the local public holiday. In the absence of such express coverage within an applicable industrial instrument, the conferring of the benefit of a local public holiday to employees is entirely within the discretion of individual employers.

PUBLIC NOTIFICATION OF DEVELOPMENT CONSENTS - ISSUED BY COUNCIL

Consent has been granted for the following applications.

A record of consents may be inspected, without charge, at the Customer First Centre of the Kempsey Shire Council, Civic Centre, Tozer Street, West Kempsey, between 8.30 am and 4.30 pm from Monday to Friday (public holidays excepted).

NOTICE OF PROPOSED DEVELOPMENTS

The following applications have been received and are notified in accordance with Council’s Policy.
NOTE: Not all applications received require public notification.

The applications and plans relating to the developments to which this notice refers may be inspected at Council’s Customer First Centre, Tozer Street, West Kempsey, any time between 8.30am and 4.30pm from Monday to Friday (public holidays excepted) for the period stated above.

At anytime during which the application may be inspected, any person:

1 who has received written notice of a proposed development from Council; or
2 who owns land and who contends that his enjoyment of that land will be detrimentally affected if a proposed development is carried out; or
3 who feels that a proposed development will adversely affect the character or amenity of the surrounding area may object in writing to council.

A person or associate of the person who makes a submission in relation to the application must make a disclosure of any reportable political donation or gift made in the previous 2 years (and up to the time the matter is determined).

The disclosure (Disclosure Statement of Political Donations and Gifts) will need to accompany the submission. A Disclosure Form and further details can be obtained from Council’s website or Customer First Centre.

If the application will need to be considered by Council, a precis of submissions received will be included in a report to Council for determination of the application. Copies of submissions may be included in the Appendices to the Business Paper unless specifically requested by the writer not to be included and the submission is clearly headed “confidential”.

AN OPEN LETTER TO RESIDENTS OF KEMPSEY SHIRE

We all want good roads, neat and tidy roadsides, mowed sporting fields and parks, clean public toilets, and reliable water and sewerage services, amongst other things.

But nobody likes increasing costs…

Every single service provided by Council, including those listed above, comes at a cost to ratepayers. Over the last few years Council has tried to find alternate sources of revenue, through grant funding and investments, to ease the burden on ratepayers. Its operations are also constantly reviewed for cost-saving opportunities.

Council has not received a special variation, other than the Environmental levy, to bolster its general rate income in the 12 years since 1997, unlike other Councils on the Mid North Coast.

Every year at Budget time it has become increasing difficult to make the dollars available stretch to cover the maintenance costs of our existing services, let alone, to introduce new ones, no matter how much they are needed, and requested by, the community.

The situation this year has been made even more difficult by the global financial crisis, which has seen Council’s income from investments reduce by $455,000. The knock-on effect is also evident in the reduced income Council will receive from the lack of new subdivisions, development applications and building applications which are expected to be down by at least $270,000. Added to this the Superannuation scheme governing all Councils in NSW has increased its employer contribution rates costing Kempsey Shire Council an additional $578,000 in 2009/10.

Council’s 2009/10 Budget papers revealed that the activities and service levels Council had hoped to deliver in 2009/10 will place Council $4.1m in deficit.

During its 3 days of budget workshops held in late February and early March, Councillors and Council staff worked closely to consider ways to reduce this deficit. They were able, through some extremely tough decision-making, to reduce this figure by $3million. Even with this drastic action, there is still a budget shortfall of $1.1million.

As a result, Council’s options are limited to…
• More cuts in service levels to what the community sees as essential services, particularly roads; resulting in complaints from an unhappy community;
• A deficit budget;
OR
• Gain community support to go to the Minister for Local Government to seek a special rate variation.

Council has chosen to have a deficit budget and to ask its community for support.

The total average increase in rates and charges will be around $3.46 per week to ratepayers living in an average urban dwelling. Some people will pay a little less than this and some a little more, depending on the value of their property.

Please consider that, even if you disagree with Council applying for this special variation, your rates will still increase in 2009/10 by about $2.69 per week. This increase is made up of the Minister for Local Government’s annual allowable percentage increase, marginal water and sewerage increases and the new green waste garbage service that needs to be charged separately in 2009/10.

Rural ratepayers will experience increases but if they do not have access to services such as water, sewerage and the new green waste garbage service, they will not incur increases in these areas.

For the average urban dwelling council is seeking your approval for an additional increase of 77 cents per week ($3.46 less $2.69). Do you believe your shire is worth this?

Council respectfully asks you to consider this and seeks your support for this special rate variation.

The Minister can only determine the level of community support for this proposal if you get involved, so please tell us how you feel.

Do not leave others in the community to be your voice … if you want to maintain current service levels please tell us so!

Allan Burgess
General Manager

PUBLIC MEETING – ANTI-SOCIAL BEHAVIOUR AT SOUTH WEST ROCKS

South West Rocks Chamber of Commerce and South West Rocks Ratepayers Association, in conjunction with Kempsey Shire Council extend an invitation to all concerned residents of the Shire to attend a public meeting to discuss the incidents of anti-social behaviour occurring at South West Rocks on Tuesday, 31st March 2009, from 6.00 pm at South West Rocks Surf Lifesaving Club.